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That was only one of the more unorthodox methods the session’s facilitator, Malcom Chapman, used to help generate ideas from the almost 100 people who showed up to offer their input on the Sioux Falls 2025 downtown plan.

The session, held Thursday evening in the Orpheum Theatre’s studio theater, was one of the first steps toward designing the 2025 downtown plan. City officials hope to build on what the city was able to do under the 2015 downtown plan, said economic development manager Brent O’Neil.

“We want to get input to see what’s on people’s minds,” O’Neil said.

The meeting began with everyone sitting in 100 chairs arranged in a circle in the center of the room. That arrangement served to reinforce the message Chapman was trying to impart to the crowd, along with the reading of “The Sneetches.”

Chapman, who used to be a captain in the Marine Corps, said he used to read the book to his Marines as a way to inspire acceptance of diversity.

“Don’t be afraid to invite new and different to the table,” he told the crowd. “We need people to say, ‘No, I don’t agree with that.’ ”

The planning process for the 2025 plan is in its infancy, O’Neil said, and Thursday’s meeting was designed to give people a chance to help set the tone and vision for the whole project.

“We’re really pleased with the turnout,” said Planning and Building Services Director Mike Cooper. “The diversity of the people here is great. If you look around, you’ve got old people and young people and people who live downtown and people who don’t.”

One of those people was Ivy Oland, 31. She said she’s lived downtown for five years and was glad to be able to have a role in determining the future of the area.

“It’s just great to have a forum to discuss things that have been successful and things that didn’t work,” Oland said.

Thursday’s meeting will be the first of several meetings the city will hold to gather public input on the 2025 downtown plan, O’Neill said. The city also has been sending out surveys and sending planners to public events to gather input.

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“What you need to know is this plan will not be put together by two, three or four people, it will be put together by you,” Community Development Director Darrin Smith said.

O’Neil said the emphasis for Thursday’s meeting was on generating as many ideas as possible for what to include in the 2025 plan. To do that, the crowd was asked to divide themselves among 13 tables, each of which represented a different piece of downtown, ranging from historic preservation to parking. The idea was to have a conversation about the aspect of downtown the table represented.

Each table was staffed by a facilitator who asked a few questions and took notes about the conversation.

Matt Nelson, who works for the city’s public parking department, facilitated the discussion at the parking table. He said the ideas people brought to his table and what they had to say about current parking plans, which could include a mixed-use parking ramp downtown, were invaluable.